Phoenix

The Tivoli

Phoenix – The Tivoli

Phoenix – The Tivoli

Written by Lachlan Eunson

Photos by Claudia Ciapocha

It’s not understatement to say that Phoenix have not only carved their name into music history but they have also carved their charismatic way into the hearts of thousands. Luckily, Brisbane was able to get taste of their moves at The Tivoli, after the recent release of their latest album ‘Ti Amo’.

As the beautiful venue steadily filled in the wait for the French superstars, the lights dimmed to a deep ocean blue as Australian electro pop charmer Cleopold took to the stage. Having not visited Brisbane since his showcase at Bigsound in 2017, it was nice to have his intimate hue back to play through Down In Flames, Not Coming Down, The Space Between and more of his melodic bangers. His ambient and vibrant presence was a beautiful beginning before the show to come.

After an 80’s boogie intermission, the room was full and the time for the indie pop rock geniuses to hit the stage was here. Phoenix waited for nothing and jumped straight into Girlfriend from their album ‘Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix’. A huge backlit wall paneled through fluorescent colours and allowed us all to jam out and dance in pure excitement while the band continued to play through well-known bangers J-Boy, Lasso and Fences. The Tivoli was consumed by the energy, sound and vibrancy that the band brought. There were a few beautiful cues to the powerfully enthusiastic drummer who seemed in charge of prepping the crowd and the 6-piece band for the next song.

The most prominent feature of the show at this point was the light show. A creative use of block colours with flashing, pulsating lights placed the band in an untouched box of heavenliness. Lisztomania had us all, including the band, shook and the ridiculously enthusiastic and warm reception we were both presenting each other. A beautiful, iconic rainbow banner light up the back as they went on to play through Fleur de Lys, Lovelife and Role Model from their new record ‘Ti Amo’. Sporting a few beautiful instrumental solos, their energy, love for both music and us, and their continued artistic light show was already placing second too few in my opinion of live performances. This on top of being lucky enough to hear their tantalizing French accents.

Having the bass and reverb continue to vibrate their way through our bodies as the well-dressed French-men swayed their hips and jammed out made the experience all the more enjoyable. Trying To Be Cool and Love Like A Sunset – Part I & II pulled the pace down a touch before smashing out Ti Amo (title track) and Chloroform. By this point, Thomas the front man was wondering amongst the crowd whilst singing through If I Ever Feel Better and Too Young. After bringing up a straight up guitar shredder for a solo, they had us all wide eyed and sitting in the palm of their hands. Emanating a beautiful kaleidoscope, they left only to return for a 5-song encore which included the moment that we (I) had been waiting for, 1901. It was astonishingly incredible to see this song in front of me with such energy that the mezzanine that I was stationed on had begun shaking. Ending the song with an outro that tops all outro’s saw Thomas again amongst the roaring crowd, being held up standing and moved around the crowd so he could climb onto the side of the mezzanine for the final standing ovation.

We were astounded and not ready for the performance that they blessed us with. They were bright, creative, fun and so inspiringly enthusiastic. It was ridiculously difficult to pay attention the review i knew i had to be writing, they were so alluring. The deep green and red light show combined with the artistic background light wall transcended their set to something incredible. it was if they were performing in a 2008 film clip about to premier on RAGE TV where they were encased in a TV and were untouchable. It was seriously a dream.

Written by Lachlan Eunson

Photos by Claudia Ciapocha

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We are consolidation of some of Sunshine Coast's keenest photographers. Past work includes official backstage photography, commercial media co-ordination as well as covering international touring acts.